Psalm 10-16

Psalm 10-16New International Version (NIV)

1 Why, Lord, do you stand far off?Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,who are caught in the schemes he devises.3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart;he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;in all his thoughts there is no room for God.5 His ways are always prosperous;your laws are rejected by[b] him;he sneers at all his enemies.6 He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.”He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”

7 His mouth is full of lies and threats;trouble and evil are under his tongue.8 He lies in wait near the villages;from ambush he murders the innocent.His eyes watch in secret for his victims;9 like a lion in cover he lies in wait.He lies in wait to catch the helpless;he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.10 His victims are crushed, they collapse;they fall under his strength.11 He says to himself, “God will never notice;he covers his face and never sees.”

12 Arise,Lord! Lift up your hand, O God.Do not forget the helpless.13 Why does the wicked man revile God?Why does he say to himself,“He won’t call me to account”?14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;you consider their grief and take it in hand.The victims commit themselves to you;you are the helper of the fatherless.15 Break the arm of the wicked man;call the evildoer to account for his wickednessthat would not otherwise be found out.

16 The Lord is King for ever and ever;the nations will perish from his land.17 You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed,so that mere earthly mortalswill never again strike terror.

Psalm 11

For the director of music. Of David.

1 In the Lord I take refuge.How then can you say to me:“Flee like a bird to your mountain.2 For look, the wicked bend their bows;they set their arrows against the stringsto shoot from the shadowsat the upright in heart.3 When the foundations are being destroyed,what can the righteous do?”

4 The Lord is in his holy temple;the Lord is on his heavenly throne.He observes everyone on earth;his eyes examine them.5 The Lord examines the righteous,but the wicked, those who love violence,he hates with a passion.6 On the wicked he will rainfiery coals and burning sulfur;a scorching wind will be their lot.

7 For the Lord is righteous,he loves justice;the upright will see his face.

For the director of music. According to sheminith.[d] A psalm of David.

1 Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;those who are loyal have vanished from the human race.2 Everyone lies to their neighbor;they flatter with their lipsbut harbor deception in their hearts.

3 May the Lord silence all flattering lipsand every boastful tongue—4 those who say,“By our tongues we will prevail;our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?”

5 “Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan,I will now arise,” says the Lord.“I will protect them from those who malign them.”6 And the words of the Lord are flawless,like silver purified in a crucible,like gold[e] refined seven times.

7 You, Lord, will keep the needy safeand will protect us forever from the wicked,8 who freely strut aboutwhen what is vile is honored by the human race.

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 How long,Lord? Will you forget me forever?How long will you hide your face from me?2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughtsand day after day have sorrow in my heart?How long will my enemy triumph over me?

3 Look on me and answer,Lord my God.Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death,4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

5 But I trust in your unfailing love;my heart rejoices in your salvation.6 I will sing the Lord’s praise,for he has been good to me.

Psalm 14

For the director of music. Of David.

1 The fool[g] says in his heart,“There is no God.”They are corrupt, their deeds are vile;there is no one who does good.

2 The Lord looks down from heavenon all mankindto see if there are any who understand,any who seek God.3 All have turned away, all have become corrupt;there is no one who does good,not even one.

4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?

They devour my people as though eating bread;they never call on the Lord.5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,for God is present in the company of the righteous.6 You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor,but the Lord is their refuge.

7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!When the Lord restores his people,let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

Psalm 15

A psalm of David.

1 Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?Who may live on your holy mountain?

2 The one whose walk is blameless,who does what is righteous,who speaks the truth from their heart;3 whose tongue utters no slander,who does no wrong to a neighbor,and casts no slur on others;4 who despises a vile personbut honors those who fear the Lord;who keeps an oath even when it hurts,and does not change their mind;5 who lends money to the poor without interest;who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these thingswill never be shaken.

Psalm 16

2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;apart from you I have no good thing.”3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.I will not pour out libations of blood to such godsor take up their names on my lips.

5 Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup;you make my lot secure.6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;surely I have a delightful inheritance.7 I will praise the Lord, who counsels me;even at night my heart instructs me.8 I keep my eyes always on the Lord.With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;my body also will rest secure,10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,nor will you let your faithful[i] one see decay.11 You make known to me the path of life;you will fill me with joy in your presence,with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Footnotes:

Psalm 10:1Psalms 9 and 10 may originally have been a single acrostic poem in which alternating lines began with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In the Septuagint they constitute one psalm.

Psalm 10:5See Septuagint; Hebrew / they are haughty, and your laws are far from

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